Shrine maiden
by Tatsu Satsuki
Summary: Firsty attempt at a one shot, sort of sad. The meeting in dreams bit, bugs me a little, so I found an alternative :-)


The closest I get to owning Spirited Away is the DVD...Sheesh.

I watch the girl.  
  
For the last few months, she has taken up the care of the little shrine. She has had no formal training, that I can see, but she goes about her work with a will usually seen in someone much older than her thirteen apparent years.  
  
From somewhere she has found a plain copper bowl, which she fills from the spring that used to be the rising of the Kohaku river, long since filled and built over.   
  
I am suprised that she knows about the prohibition on iron and steel.  
  
Perhaps the girl is a natural, perhaps she would welcome tuition from an old priest. I decide to go and introduce myself, except she turns and I can see her eyes for the first time, and it takes all of my strength not to gasp. She won't need my help after all, for deep in those caramel coloured orbs is the light that only comes from having been spirit touched.   
  
And she has been touched, marked and scarred. Deeply.   
  
She sits cross legged on the stone flagged floor, the bowl securely in her lap as she peers into the water. Tendrils of chestnut hair fall around her face after working themselves free of the unusual violet band holding her ponytail. The tips of her shaking fingers not quite touching the surface of the liquid, as though trying to caress a face only she can see.  
  
"Haku-sama!" the girl almost giggles. The pleasure and pain in her voice cuts like a knife.  
  
"Sen! The big tub needs cleaning!"  
  
And then there are peals of laughter, both masculine and feminine, as though the girl and the spirit are sharing an old joke. If I had not been a Shinto priest, I would have fallen over in shock and even then I am suprised that she can see and I can hear. His voice is soft and warm, with a subliminal rumble. Whatever he is, he is strong.  
  
"I miss you, Haku. When will I be able to meet you again?"  
  
The spirit sighs heavily.  
  
"You know the rules, Chi-love, the terms of my contract are still binding, another three years, unless I can persuade Yuubaba, and you know how likely that is."  
  
The spirit is bound? And not to this gentle girl who cares for him? I wonder what sort of spirit he is, he must be of water, that much is certain, but his name is not familiar. I pause in my thoughts, a spirit doesn't give it's true name to just anyone, perhaps that is how he became bound in the first place.  
  
Tears trail down her face, and I can see she is careful not to let any drip into the bowl.  
  
"How is school going? Are you making us proud and learning well?"  
  
"I try my best Haku, my grades are good and I got a 94 on the last test I took."  
  
Her voice turns apologetic and a little afraid.  
  
"Azuma-san is trying to make me go to the spring dance with him, I keep telling him no. He frightens me..."  
  
The rumbling growl from the bowl almost shakes the leaves from the nearby trees and I know that it came from no human throat. I would not like to be this Azuma-san, the spirit is more than angry with him. This one is very possessive and protective of his miko.  
  
She asks another question, perhaps hoping it will divert him from his anger.  
  
"How are things at the bath house? How are Rin, 'Grandfather' and 'Grandmother'?"  
  
Even though I can hear the quotes around the honourifics, I feel the need to get away from her, loved by one, adopted by two and a friend to a another, this little girl has access to more spiritual power than any I have met and it frightens me, but I must know if she is of the light or the dark, I have even more reason to want to know now..  
  
"Kamajii and Zeniiba both send thair love, as usual. Rin is her usual abrasive self, Oh the Daikon spirit and Nagara Nushi-sama send their regards too.."  
  
There is a small pause as though something has caught his attention. "Yuubaba is calling, Love, I've got to go. Same time, same place, next month?"   
  
"Same time, same place. Goodbye, love."  
  
For a few moments she sits motionless, then she touches the surface of the water and wipes a little on her face to wash away the tear tracks. I don't believe that someone so hurt could be working for the dark, but I must be sure.  
  
As she tips the water over the little altar, I hear her sobbing whisper and it breaks my heart.  
  
"Not long enough, never long enough. Until next time, Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi...Love."  
  
Suddenly it makes sense and I consider myself stupid for not working it out earlier.  
  
She is the chosen of the Great Dragon Spirit of the Kohaku River, a lost God. So this tiny slip of a thirteen year old girl is the soul-mate of a deity.  
  
I smile to myself and decide to keep the child safe when she comes to visit her love, after all, I know when and where, now. I'll also pass the message around the other temples, as it is obvious she doesn't live locally. She must be protected, after all, although he is a lost God, he still holds great power.  
  
As I walk away, it occurs to me to feel sorry for Azuma-san, In direct competition with a God, over a girl....And if I remember my lessons right, the Dragon Kohaku is beautiful in both his forms, And she loves him.


End file.
